JCPenney Co.

The revelation this week that Target chief marketing officer Michael Francis had jumped ship to become president at JCPenney was a surprising development that sucked some of the oxygen out of the retailer’s Minneapolis headquarters. Target is all about marketing and Francis was instrumental in shaping some of the most interesting customer communications the marketing world saw during the past decade. He was so highly thought of that earlier this year he was tapped to lead Target’s entry into Canada, arguably the company’s most significant longer term growth driver.

New York -- In a surprise announcement, Target said that Michael Francis, executive VP and chief marketing officer of Target Corp., has elected to leave the company.  In January, 2011, Francis was charged with overseeing with Target’s Canadian entrance. 

The retailer was short on specifics regarding Francis’ departure. 

"We would like to thank Michael for his many contributions and wish him the best in his future endeavors" said Gregg Steinhafel, chairman, president and CEO, in a statement. 

MINNEAPOLIS — Michael Francis, EVP and CMO of Target, and the person charged with leading the retailer's expansion into Canada, has left the company, Target announced Monday.

“We would like to thank Michael for his many contributions and wish him the best in his future endeavors” said Gregg Steinhafel, chairman, president and CEO.

With its chief marketing officer, Michael Francis leaving to take on the role of president of JCPenney, Target is temporarily without an executive to head up its expansion into Canada, which should come as good news to Walmart Canada, which recently announced some leadership changes of its own.

Former Asda executive and Walmart Canada CEO David Cheesewright has a new role that opens up some intriguing growth possibilities, given his new responsibilities include oversight of geographic areas where Walmart doesn’t currently operate stores.

New York City -- A Thursday Reuters report said that Liz Claiborne has won the dismissal of a shareholder lawsuit that accused the company of misrepresenting its relationships with Macy's and J.C. Penney.

U.S. District Judge Richard Holwell said Thursday that the investors failed to show that Liz Claiborne intended to mislead them about the relationships.

The class period ran from Jan. 16 to April 30, 2007, the day before Liz Claiborne reported much lower-than-expected profit and sales at department store chains.
 

Cherry Hill, N.J. -- As part of the $200-million redevelopment of Cherry Hill Mall, in Cherry Hill, N.J., Zumiez has added a 2,444-sq.-ft. store near the Grand Court of the mall.

The Pennsylvania Real Estate Investment Trust (PREIT) property also added shoe retailer Traffic with a 1,500-sq.-ft. store in the J.C. Penney wing, and natural food retailer Pure Health Bar is slated to open in November.

Morrisville, N.C. -- Macy’s and  J.C. Penney Co. rank as the nation’s top “local” advertisers, according to a new report from RSR Research. The study, “The Local Approach: The State of Localized Advertising in Retail,” finds most major retailers are missing huge opportunities to drive store traffic through localized digital advertising campaigns.

Rock Hill, S.C. -- The developers of Rock Hill Galleria, in Rock Hill, S.C., said Tuesday that the 470,000-sq.-ft. regional mall will initiate a comprehensive renovation and expansion of mall anchor J.C. Penney.

Construction will begin soon and is scheduled for completion in fall 2012.